Local Knowledge of Edible Flowers Used in Mizoram

Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge Vol 18(4), October 2019, pp 714-723

Local knowledge of edible flowers used in Mizoram

SD Khomdram*,1,+, L Fanai1 & SD Yumkham2 1Department of Botany, Mizoram University, Aizawl 796004, Mizoram, India 2Centre of Advanced Studies in Life Sciences, Manipur University, Canchipur 795 003, Manipur, India E-mail: [email protected] Received 04 April 2018; revised 21 June 2019

The edible flowers consumed by indigenous people of Mizoram were assessed from Aizawl and Champhai districts of Mizoram during 2015-2016. Altogether, 59 species of edible flowers under 50 genera and 29 families are recorded. Dominant families include Apiaceae, Lamiaceae and Leguminosae with 9% followed by Brassicaceae and Zingiberaceae scoring 7% each. Based on habit and occurrence, plants are categorized into wild (30), cultivated (21) and semi-cultivated (8). Among these plants, 30 species are marketable and 29 species are non-marketable. The study envisaged to highlight the importance of edible flowers in local cuisines of Mizo people and its potential as an additional source of food. It also attempted to document a first- hand report on the traditional knowledge on plant usage for consumption by the people of Mizoram.

Keywords: Edible flowers, Mizo people, Wild edible plants IPC Code: Int. Cl.19: A01H 5/02, A23B 9/00

Since centuries, people have gathered plant resources as a source of human food7. In Assam, the flowers of with the uses of different plant parts as a source of Oroxylum indicum (L.) Vent. and Sesbania grandiflora food, drink and medicine to fulfill their daily (L.) Pers. are taken as vegetable mainly by the Bodo requirements. Different parts of the plants like leaves, tribes8. tubers, rhizomes, shoots, fruits etc. are consumed to India being the mega-diverse region harbours rich meet the daily nutritional requirements of human biodiversity including the edible flowers9. The edible beings since prehistoric times which include the flowers commonly form part of the regular dish in cultivated and wild forms1,2. Among these different Assam and Manipur and are consumed after boiling or parts of the plants, flowers and flower buds of some frying, preparing curry or as raw which vary according plants are found to be edible and consumed in different to the floral species as well as the tribes and ways forming a part of delicacies in several dishes. The communities who use the items10,11. In Mizoram, one use of flowers in human diet for cookery are well of the north eastern states of India, houses many ethnic highlighted from various regions including Asia, communities and they have rich knowledge regarding Greece, Rome, France, Europe, etc3. Varieties of edible the use of various plants. They seek a lot of food items flowers are being served as salads, used to prepare from the wild plants and one of such item is the edible cakes and drinks in different parts of Europe and flowers which are usually considered as one of the Asia4,5. One of the greatest contributions on edible favorite dietary item among the vegetables. Although flowers was made by Lu et al. in 20166 that there have been sporadic reports on the wild edible documented as many as 180 species of edible flowers foods of Mizoram12-18, there is no specific from all over the world, most of which are cultivated documentation on the edible flowers found in the state. ones. The traditional use of flowers as a source of food The present study is an attempt to document the edible supplement was earlier reported from different regions. flowers both found in wild as well as cultivated ones The flowers of Madhuca indica is used as a source of specifically used by the indigenous people of Mizoram. staple food in peninsular India during summer and 1 Materials and methods monsoon . An Indian patent has been filed for antioxidant liquid sweetener from fresh M. indica Study Area flowers and this show the importance of edible flowers Mizoram is a hilly state lying in North-East India ————— (Latitude 21°58′/24°35′N and longitude 92°15′/ *Corresponding author 93°29′E) and forms a part of Indo-Burma hotspot. The KHOMDRAM et al.: LOCAL KNOWLEDGE OF EDIBLE FLOWERS USED IN MIZORAM 715

state is considered as a corridor zone that bridges other vegetative parts or sometimes the whole plant. India with other South East Asian countries, and Market surveys on the market price of marketable edible harbours unique flora due to its phytogeographical flowers were carried out in the Bara Bazaar of Aizawl location. It is inhabited by different communities like city taken as reference point. Thirty market vendors of Mizos, Maras, Lais, Pangs, Bawms, Hmars, Paites, different age groups (30 years – 60 years) were taken as Brus, Chakmas, Mogs etc. and forms the highest the sample group for the study and consulted for the percentage of tribal population (94.8%) in India19. information with respect to type of edible flowers, Forest coverage of the state is highest in India with sources and their uses along with the market price. Local 88.93% and supports great diversity of biological terms have been used while describing the mode of uses resources20. Two districts were selected for the study, of the flowers. These terms are ‘Bai’ a form of mix Aizawl (12, 588 km2) and Champhai (3,185 km2) boiling and ‘Tauh’ a form of dish prepared with oil and districts of Mizoram (Fig. 1). condiments after boiling. These terms represent the common traditional mode of preparation of dishes by the Survey, Interview and Plant Collection Mizo. All the findings are summarized in a table with Intensive survey programmes were conducted during their botanical name, family, vernacular names in Mizo, 2015-2016. During the present study, 45 informants voucher no., market value, mode of uses and their life were selected from 10 villages of Aizawl and Champhai form, wild or cultivated form and Relative Frequency district and data on edible flowers collected based on Citation (RFC) index value. Photographs of most of the semi-structured questionnaire. A free, prior and edible flowers are also given in Fig. 2 & Fig 3. informed consent was solicited from each informant explaining the objectives of the study. Information was Calculation gathered through face-to-face interviews guided by the RFC index shows the local importance of each semi-structured questionnaire. The survey was primarily species without considering the use-categories23,24. based on information gathered from the people with the The RFC of reported species was calculated by using age of informants range from 30 to 80 years that include the following index: both male and female respondents. Market values of plants with edible flowers are taken into consideration in RFC = FC/N (0inflorescence, tender shoots, stems, women and 26.47% were men. This is an indication leaves, bracts and tendrils etc. or simply the flowers. that women are far more knowledgeable regarding the This is because some flowers are consumed along with usage of edible flowers as compare to men. Most of the informants were aged between 30 years - 50 years (47.05%) followed by 51 years - 65 years (35.29%) and above 65 years contributing only 14.70%. It is evident that the younger generations are more actively involved in housekeeping tasks like cooking, menu making of kitchen, shopping of household items including vegetables, harvesting/collection of wild flowers for consumption or their domestication in kitchen gardens. This agrees with the role of women with great knowledge in many indigenous societies to provide uninterrupted supply of healthy food by making arrangements of the daily needs

Fig. 1 — Location map of Mizoram showing study areas of their families. Women’s traditional knowledge 716 INDIAN J TRADIT KNOW, OCTOBER 2019

Fig. 2 — Edible flowers (inflorescence) of Mizoram: – (a & b) Acmella paniculata (Wall. ex DC.) R. K.Jansen; (c) Allium chinense G. Don.; (d & e) Allium hookerii Thwaites; (f) Alocasia fornicata (Roxb.) Schott; (g) Amomum dealbatum Roxb.; (h) Bauhinia purpurea L.; (i) B. variegata L.;(j) Begonia longifolia Blume;(k) Callicarpa arborea Roxb.; (l) Carica papaya L.; (m) Chenopodium album L.; (n) Clerodendrum glandulosum Lindl.; (o) Crassocephalum crepidioides (Benth.) S. Moore; (p) Crotalaria tetragona Andrews; (q) Cucurbita maxima Duchesne; (r) Curcuma angustifolia Roxb.; (s) C. longa L.; (t) Dendrocnide sinuata (Blume) Chew; (u) Dysoxylum excelsum Blume KHOMDRAM et al.: LOCAL KNOWLEDGE OF EDIBLE FLOWERS USED IN MIZORAM 717

Fig. 3 — Edible flowers (inflorescence) of Mizoram : (a) Elsholtzia griffithii Hook.f.; (b) Eryngium foetidum L.; (c) Glinus opositifolius (L.) Aug. DC.; (d) Gmelina arborea Roxb.;(e) Houttuynia cordata Thunb.; (f)Livistona chinensis (Jacq.) Pers. R.Br.ex Mart.; (g) Musa balbisiana var. liukiuensis (Matsum.) Häkkinen;(h)M. x paradisiaca L.;(i)M. ornata Roxb.; (j) Ocimum americanum L.; (k) Osbeckia stellata Buch.-Ham. ex Ker Gawl.; (l)Pavetta crassicaulis Bremek.; (m) Persicaria chinensis (L.) H. Gross; (n) Phlogacanthus pubinervius T. Anderson; (o) Rotheca serrata (L.) Steane & Mabb.;(p) Thunbergia grandiflora (Roxb. ex Rottl.) Roxb.; (q) Trevesia palmata (Roxb. ex Lindl.) Vis.; (r) Vaccinium sprengelii (G.Don) Sleumer; (s) Viburnum sp.; (t) Wendlandia budleioides Wall.ex Wight & Arn.; (u)Zingiber officinale Roscoe

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originated from the actual needs, problems, interests domesticator to conservator and food provider to and aspirations at home and in the communities that nutritionist25,26. There is also a primary concern for make her role as plant gatherer to plant selector, plant women in maintaining the sustainability of the Table 1 — Demographic data of informants household economy. During the market survey, it was found that women take active part as vegetable Variable Categories Percentage (%) vendors and played a significant role in maintaining a Female 73.53 1 Gender Male 26.47 stable socio-economic status of the society. All the 30-50 years 47.05 informants were found to be literate, however primary 2 Age 50-65 years 35.29 and middle education dominated (79.41%) (Table 1). More than 65 years 14.70 Illiterate Nil Edible Flora Primary and Middle Education 79.41 Altogether 59 species of edible flowers belonging 3 Education Level Secondary Education 17.64 to 50 genera and 29 families are reported in Graduate (Higher education) 2.94 the present study (Table 2). Families like Apiaceae,

Table 2 — List of the plants with edible flowers in Mizoram with scientific name, family name, local name, voucher no., plant form, flowering period, mode of consumption, market value and RFC value. Sl. Plant Name/Family/Vernacular Name Voucher Plant form Flowering Mode of Consumption Market Value RFC No No. /WS/CS time 1 Acmella oleracea ((L.) R.K. LF-0001 H/CS TY Inflorescence are eaten boiled Rs 20-30/ bundle 0.64 Jansen./Asteraceae /Ansapui green or in dried forms 2 A. paniculata (Wall. ex DC.) R.K. LF-0003 H /WS TY Boiled as ‘Tauh or cooked Rs 20-30/ bundle 0.47 Jansen /Asteraceae /Ansa-te with rice 3 Aeschynanthus parviflorus (D.Don) LF-0015 E/WS Jun-Aug Acidic flower is eaten raw NM 0.06 Spreng./ Gesneriaceae/Bawlte-hlan-tai 4 Allium cepa L./ LF-0063 H/CS Jan-Apr Flowers are ground and eaten NM 0.22 Amaryllidaceae /Purunsen 5 A. chinense G. Don./ LF-0097 H/CS Aug-Nov Fried flowers are eaten, eaten Rs 20/bundle 0.47 Amaryllidaceae /Purunvar ground 6 A. hookerii Thwaites/ LF-0055 H/CS TY Fried flowers are eaten, Rs 20/bundle. 0.67 Amaryllidaceae/Mizo-Purun condiment, eaten ground 7 Alocasiafornicata (Roxb.) LF-0051 H/SCS Aug-Nov Upper portion of spadix eaten Rs 20-50/bundle 0.78 Schott/Araceae/Baibing boiled or ground after steaming 8 Amomum dealbatum LF-0047 H/SCS Apr-May Young inflorescence are eaten Rs 20-every 30 0.78 Roxb./Zingiberaceae/Aidu boiled or fried pieces 9 Anethum graveolens L. LF-0039 H/SCS Oct-Mar Inflorescence along with NM 0.11 /Apiaceae/Masala leaves are used as chutneys 10 Bauhinia purpurea L. / LF-0104 T/WS Aug-Nov Flowers are eaten raw or NM 0.27 Leguminosae /Vau-fa-vang fried 11 B. variegata L./Leguminosae /Vaube LF-0054 T/WS Jun-Sep Flowersare eaten raw or fried NM 0.4 12 Begonia longifolia LF-0061 H/WS TY Acidic flower is eaten raw NM 0.08 Blume /Begoniaceae/Sekhupthur 13 Brassica oleracea var botrytis L./ LF-0052 H/CS TY Leaves along-with Rs 50-150/ Kg 1 Brassicaceae /Parbawr inflorescence head is eaten fried, boiled or ‘Tauh’ 14 B. oleracea var italica L./ LF-0024 H/CS TY Flower buds and leaves are Rs 80-160/ Kg 0.96 Brassicaceae /Broccoli eaten fried or as a salad 15 Brassica juncea (L.)Czern/ LF-0025 H/CS TY Flowers and leaves are eaten Rs 20-60/ bundle. 1 Brassicaceae/Antam fried or as a salad 16 Callicarpa arborea LF-0108 T/WS May-Oct Flowers are cooked with meat NM 0.06 Roxb./Lamiaceae/Hnah-kiah 17 Carica papaya L. LF-0037 T/CS TY Male flower is eaten fried NM 0.11 /Caricaceae/Thingfanghma 18 Centella asiatica (L.) Urb./Apiaceae LF-0044 H/WS TY Leaves with inflorescence is Rs 10-20/ bundle 0.27 /Lambak/Darbengbur eaten boiled or as chutney (Contd.) KHOMDRAM et al.: LOCAL KNOWLEDGE OF EDIBLE FLOWERS USED IN MIZORAM 719

Table 2 — List of the plants with edible flowers in Mizoram with scientific name, family name, local name, voucher no., plant form, flowering period, mode of consumption, market value and RFC value. Sl. Plant Name/Family/Vernacular Name Voucher Plant form Flowering Mode of Consumption Market Value RFC No No. /WS/CS time 19 Chenopodium album L./ LF-0038 H/WS Dec-May Inflorescence with leaves and NM 0.11 Amaranthaceae /Kawlbuh tender shoots are eaten ‘Tauh’ 20 Clerodendrum glandulosum LF-0041 S/SCS Jul-Oct Leaves with inflorescence is Rs 10-20/ bundle 0.51 Lindl. /Lamiaceae /Phuihnam eaten boiled 21 Coriandrum sativum LF-0043 H/CS TY Leaves with inflorescence are Rs 10/ bundle 0.89 L./Apiaceae/Dhania/ Nannan taken as culinary herb 22 Crassocephalum crepidioides (Benth.) LF-0087 H/WS TY Inflorescence chewed and the NM 0.06 S. Moore/Asteraceae /Buar tender shoots along with flowers are eaten steamed 23 Crotolaria juncea L. / LF-0102 S/WS Oct-Feb Flowers are cooked with meat NM 0.11 Leguminosae /Tumthang and fish 24 C. tetragona Andrews / LF-0009 S/WS Oct-Mar Flowers are cooked with Rs 10-20/ bundle 0.69 Leguminosae /Tumthang meat 25 Cucurbita maxima LF-0011 C/CS Jun-Nov Flowers are eaten fried with Rs 20/packet. 0.87 Duchesne/Cucurbitaceae /Mai egg 26 Curcuma angustifolia LF-0018 H/WS Apr-Sep Flowers are eaten fried Rs 20/ bundle 0.06 Roxb. /Zingiberaceae/Ai chhia 27 C. longa L./Zingberaceae /Aieng LF-0023 H/CS Apr-Sep Flowers are eaten fried NM 0.04 28 Dendrocnide sinuata (Blume) LF-0067 S/WS Oct-Jan Flowers are eaten boiled NM 0.06 Chew/Urticaceae /Thakpui 29 Dysoxylum excelsum Blume/ LF-0004 T/SCS Apr-Jul Flowers along with leaves is Rs 30- 50/bundle 0.47 Meliaceae /Thingthupui eaten boiled 30 Elsholtzia griffithii Hook.f. / LF-0068 H/CS Sep-Jan Fresh and dried inflorescence Rs 30- 50/bundle 0.87 Lamiaceae /Lengser used for Chutney and flavouring agent 31 Eryngium foetidum L. /Apiaceae/ LF-0027 H/WS TY Inflorescence used for chutney Rs 10-20/ bundle 0.69 Bahkhawr and flavouring agent 32 Glinus opositifolius (L.) Aug. DC./ LF-0084 H/WS TY Whole plant with inflorescence Rs 10-20/bundle 0.18 Molluginaceae /Bakkhate is eaten fried 33 Gmelina arborea Roxb. /Lamiaceae/ LF-0100 T/WS Feb-May Flowers are eaten fried NM 0.04 Thlam-Vawng 34 Hibiscus sabdariffa L./ LF-0046 S/CS Jun-Oct Sour persistent calyx is eaten NM 0.51 Malvaceae/Lakher anthur raw or cooked as vegetable 35 Houttuynia cordata Thunb./ LF-0089 H/CS Apr-Oct Flowers with stem used as Rs 20-30/ bundle 0.06 Saururaceae/Uithinthang condiment 36 Livistona chinensis (Jacq.) Pers. LF-0032 T/CS Mar-May Inflorescence boiled alone or Rs 10-20/bundle 0.42 R.Br.ex Mart. /Arecaceae /Buarpui with meat or fried 37 Mollugo pentaphylla L. / LF-0019 H/WS Aug-Oct Whole plant with inflorescence NM 0.04 Molluginaceae /Vahmim bung eaten as bitter vegetable 38 Momordica charantia L./ LF-0006 C/CS July-Sep Flower along with leaves are Rs 20/ bundle 0.27 Cucurbitaceae / Changkha eaten boiled 39 Musa balbisiana var. liukiuensis LF-0031 H/WS TY Inflorescence eaten boiled or Rs 30- 50/bundle 0.62 (Matsum) Häkkinen /Musaceae /Tumbu fried and used as pickle inflorescence 40 M. x paradisiaca L. /Musaceae/ LF-0095 H/SCS TY Spadix is eaten as ‘Bai’ or Rs 10-20/ 0.69 Lairawk tumbu fried inflorescence 41 M. ornata Roxb./Musaceae/ LF-0035 H/SCS TY Inflorescence is eaten as ‘Bai’ Rs 30-50/bundle 0.29 Changvandawt inflorescence 42 Ocimum americanum L./Lamiaceae/ LF-0029 H/SCS Aug-Jan Inflorescence is used as Rs 10-20/bundle 0.73 Runhmui condiment, chutney and flavouring agent 43 Osbeckia stellata Buch.-Ham. ex Ker LF-0022 S/WS May-Nov Flowers are eaten raw by local NM 0.04 Gawl./ Melastomataceae/ Builukham children 44 Pavetta crassicaulis LF-0111 S/WS Oct-Jun Flowers are eaten fried NM 0.27 Bremek./Rubiaceae/ Thai-nu rual (Contd.)

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Lamiaceae and Leguminosae recorded maximum remaining 29 species are non-marketable. Some of 9% each followed by Brassicaceae and Zingiberaceae these marketable edible flowers always fetch good contributing 7% each, Asteraceae and Musaceae with market value for their limited production in the state or 5% and the remaining families contribute ≤3% their availability only in a particular season like (Fig. 5). The plants are dominated by herbs (54%) Livistonia chinensis (Rs. 50-100/ inflorescence) followed by shrubs (18%), trees (18%), climbers (7%) (Fig. 3f), Alocasia fornicata (Rs. 20-50/bundle) and epiphytes (2%) (Fig. 4). From the listed plants, 21 (Fig. 2f), Trevesia palmata (Rs. 20-50/ bundle) species are cultivated, 30 species are collected from (Fig. 3q), Zingiber officinale (Rs. 20-30/bundle) (Fig. wild and the other 8 species are found as semi- 3u) and some for their high demand like the cultivated cultivated which means that although found in wild, Brassica oleracea var. botrytis (Rs. 50-150/kg) and local people have started domestication and subsequent Brassica oleraceae var. italica (Rs. 80-160/kg). cultivation due to their socio economic importance. These edible flowers are consumed in different Out of the 59 plants, more than half are found to be in forms as they are taken as raw, boiled, fried or as wild form. This shows the importance of wild edible culinary herb. Some of flowers are taken for their plants in Mizoram. Many of the edible flowers are unique acidic taste and preferred as raw flowers found to be marketable although collected from wild. It (Aeschynanthus parviflora, Begonia longifolia, was observed that 30 species are marketable and the Osbeckia stellata) etc. The inflorescences of KHOMDRAM et al.: LOCAL KNOWLEDGE OF EDIBLE FLOWERS USED IN MIZORAM 721

Elsholtzia griffithii (Fig. 3a) are used from hypoglycemic properties32,34,35. Some flowers also immemorial times either in green or dried form and is constitute as an important source of food supplement, one of the most preferred flavoring agents. Other and used as natural food colourant and even for other common wild edible flowers include spadix of Musa medicinal purposes36,37. However, most of the sp. (Fig.3 g-i) and Alocasia fornicata (Fig. 2f), biochemical studies on edible flowers are related to flowers of Crotolaria tetragona (Fig. 2p) and the cultivated ornamental plants28,38,39. Literature on Amomum dealbatum (Fig. 2g) are served as a favorite phytochemical contents of most of the edible flowers vegetable item. Besides this, agricultural crops like listed above is meager and still remains as a big void. inflorescence of Brassica sp. and Zingiber officinale Edible flowers of few species like Hibiscus safdariffa, (Fig. 3u) are also widely consumed. Begonia sempervirens, Alocasia fornicata, Acmella oleracea and some cultivated ones have gained the Phytochemical contents in edible flowers attention of some researchers and contributed There are various studies dealing with the worthwhile contributions on the phytochemistry of phytochemistry, dietary elements and bioactive edible flowers. Flowers of Hibiscus safdariffa has 27-33 components found in the edible flowers . Reports various phenolic compounds like flavonols, flavones, on the phytochemical studies on some edible flowers anthocyanins, phenolic acids, flavanols etc. leading to show that they have rich source of minerals, its antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti- nutritional compounds with antioxidant and obesity properties, and also possess neuro-protective effect6,27. It has also displayed many other health benefits like nephroprotective and hepatoprotective effect40,41. Fixed oils extracted from spadix of Alocasia fornicata possess antioxidant and antibacterial property42. The fully mature and flowering plants of Acmella oleracea was analyzed and found to contain phytosterols and tannins. In addition to that, it was found to have total phenol content of 1.38 GAE mg/g and total flavonoid content of 28.7 QE mg/g43.

Key findings

Fig. 4 — Chart showing the percentage of different life forms Many of the edible flowers presented above were contributing to edible flowers of Mizoram already reported from other regions and are eaten by

Fig. 5 — Chart showing percentage diversity in families of edible flowers found in Mizoram 722 INDIAN J TRADIT KNOW, OCTOBER 2019

different indigenous people of India10,11. However demand. The present study also revealed that women during our investigation, we came across few unique hold more knowledge than men with regard to the wild edible flowers from Mizoram that are consumed edible flowers in Mizoram. In one sense, the role of only in the state and not reported earlier from any women as traditional knowledge keepers or as plant other areas or by any community. These plants conservationists and their socio-economic contribution include flowers of Aeschynanthus maculata, Begonia within the community needed to be acknowledged. longifolia (Fig. 2j), Livistonia chinensis Commercial exploitation of these edible flowers with (Fig. 3f), Mollugo pentaphylla, Osbeckia stellata (Fig. 3k), proper management under a system for their Trevesia palmata (Fig. 3q), Vaccinium sprengelii sustainable use can help in generating income for the (Fig. 3r) and Viburnum sp. (Fig. 3s), etc. Most of indigenous people. The present finding is only the these 08 species are harvested from wild and only 03 primary data and supplements the existing genetic of them are marketed. Some of the edible flowers are resources on edible flowers of the world, both wild and quite popular for the ethnic people of Mizoram that cultivated species. Henceforth, an elaborative they form an indispensable part of their diet. Many of exploration programme is further needed to document the edible flowers are originated from Asia with their the potential edible flowers in the remaining population wide distribution in tropical and subtropical regions of of the state which is formed by several ethnic tribes. 6 the world . As Mizoram enjoys both tropical and Acknowledgements subtropical climate, with further deeper studies in the We are thankful to the local informants of Aizawl remaining districts, we can expect more interesting and Champhai district, market vendors of Bara Bazaar wild edible flowers from Mizoram in near future. of Aizawl for their participation in the study and for

sharing their valuable knowledge. Data analysis During data analysis, RFC which is a measure of References the relative importance of the plants known locally 1 Singh HB & Arora RK, Wild edible plants of India, 1st edn, ranges from 1-0.04 with maximum value found to be (New Delhi ICAR Publication), 1978. 2 Srivastava RC, Wild edible plants of Sikkim Himalaya, Bull 1 in the cultivated marketable plants like Brassica Bot Surv India, 36(1-4) (1994) 95-126. juncea, B.oleracea var. botrytis as they were 3 Fernandes L, Casal S, Pereira JA, Saraiva JA & Ramalhosa mentioned by all the informants. This shows the E, Edible flowers: A review of the nutritional, antioxidant, importance of these edible flowers which is an antimicrobial properties and effects on human health, J Food Compos Anal, 60(2017) 38-50. important food crop all over the world and have been 4 Kelley KM, Behe BK, Biernbaum JA & Poff KL, Consumer cultivating for several thousand years for their high preference for edible-flower color, container size, and price, economic values. After analyzing the RFC values, Hort Science, 36(2001) 801−804. many of the edible flowers are known and used by the 5 Kelley KM, Behe, BK, Biernbaum, JA & Poff K L, Mizo people. However, some of the edible flowers are Combinations of colors and species of containerized edible flowers: effect on consumer preferences, Hort Science, less commonly used by the Mizo people with RFC 37(2002) 218−221. value of 0.04 (Curcuma longa, Gmelina arborea, 6 Lu B, Li M &Yin R, Phytochemical content, health benefits, Mollugo pentaphylla and Smilax perfoliata). and toxicology of common edible flowers, a review (2000–2015), Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 56 (2016) 130-148. Conclusion 7 Patel M & Naik SN, Flowers of Madhuca indica J. F. Gmel.: Present status and future perspectives. Indian J Nat Prod The paper documents 59 edible flowers used by the Resour, 1(4) (2010) 438-443. indigenous people of Mizoram. Although some of the 8 Narzary H, Brahma S & Basumatary S, Wild Edible edible flowers are found to be cultivated because of Vegetables Consumed by Bodo Tribe of Kokrajhar District their high demand in human diet (Brassica sp.) with (Assam), North East India, Arch Appl Sci Res, 5(5) RFC value of 1 showing their cultural importance, (2013)182-190. 9 Das M, Barick LD, Mondal DN & Hazra J, Edible Flowers most of them are collected from wild. During food of India with Multiple Medicinal Uses: An Overview, Int J shortages and occurrence of ‘Mautam’ a famine, the Herb Med, 3(2) (2015) 7-9. wild edible plants including the edible flowers 10 Devi KS, Devi YS & Singh PK, A census on edible flowers diversify the food providing source and even stabilized found in the valley districts of Manipur, J Econ Taxon Bot, 33(1) (2009) 232-239. the security of the local people during odd times. Many 11 Deka K & Nath N, Documentation of Edible Flowers of of the marketable edible flowers also provide potential Western Assam, Am J Phytomed Clin Ther, 2(10) (2014) good market value due to limited supply and great 1124-1140. KHOMDRAM et al.: LOCAL KNOWLEDGE OF EDIBLE FLOWERS USED IN MIZORAM 723

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